UB joins National Science Foundation biometrics research center

Press release

The partnership, which
includes NSA, Homeland Security and others, is expected to generate more than
$1 million for UB research

University
at Buffalo engineers are developing a lie detector that works by tracking eye
movement. They're also pioneering innovative ways to secure fingerprint
templates.

Because
of such groundbreaking biometrics research and other advancements, the National
Science Foundation has made UB a member of its Center for Identification
Technology Research (CITeR). The designation is expected to:

Bring UB more than $1 million over five years for
biometrics research.

Further enhance UB's status as a leader in the growing
field of biometrics.

Help UB build and maintain key relationships with
industry, government and other universities doing biometrics research.

Biometrics
is the science of recognizing people based on their physiological or behavioral
characteristic; this includes, but is not limited to, examining someone's
facial features and expressions, their voice and signature. Organizations as
diverse as the FBI and Disney World use biometric identifiers.

Officially
classified as a "NSF Industry/University Cooperative Research Center," CITeR
was established more than 10 years ago to bring together academia, industry and
government to collaborate on biometrics research. UB's proposal to join CITeR
was supported in 2012 by the Western New York congressional delegation.

"The
University at Buffalo's designation as a Center for Identification Technology
Research is another exciting advancement for Buffalo's academic community,"
said U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand. "This designation will allow UB to become an
integral player in the field of biometrics, creating safer borders, and
offering new and exciting opportunities in science and technology to its
students."

Joining
CITeR is an example of how UB is partnering with government, industry and
institutes of higher learning to conduct innovative research that helps solve
problems outside the university setting, said Liesl Folks, Ph.D., dean of UB's
School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.

"UB's
engagement with the industry and government entities participating in CITeR
will offer fantastic opportunities for faculty and graduate students to contribute
to solutions to real-world biometrics problems," she said. "Partnering in CITeR
offers a great opportunity to enhance UB's impact in this field of growing
domestic and international importance."

Five
affiliates - the National Security Agency, the Department of Homeland Security,
Qualcomm, Raytheon BBN Technologies and CUBRC - are partnering with UB in CITeR
and have agreed to contribute about $200,000 combined annually to support the
center. NSF, meanwhile, will provide $300,000 over five years.

UB's
inclusion in CITeR is based largely upon the work of the university's Center
for Unified Biometrics and Sensors. Created in 2003, CUBS advances the
scientific underpinnings of biometric technologies for civilian and homeland
security applications by integrating pattern recognition and machine learning
algorithms with sensor technology.

He
and other CUBS researchers will bring to CITeR expertise in core biometric
methods, such as fingerprints and face recognition; soft biometric methods,
such as gestures, age and emotion; and such related areas as advanced computer
vision, robotics, cryptography and theoretical computer science.

Additionally,
UB will broaden the focus of CITeR to include novel biometrics-driven
applications, such as the creation of personalized "smart spaces," said
Srirangaraj Setlur, CUBS principal research scientist. Smart spaces are
ordinary environments, like a conference room or highway, equipped with audio
and visual sensors that can perceive and react automatically based on the
identification of people in the environment.

Supplementing
CITeR's primary goal of high-quality, industry-relevant, fundamental research,
another objective is to support education in science, technology, engineering
and mathematics, or STEM, fields.

Under
the auspices of Buffalo-area Engineering Awareness for Minorities, UB will host
events that highlight biometrics applications to educate and attract local high
school and undergraduate students to pursue academic degrees in STEM fields.